Nichushkin ready to join NHL

Valeri Nichushkin said it was the National Hockey League or bust if he came to North America.

He’s giving himself the opportunity to prove it.

Nichushkin told Semen Galkevich of rsport.ru that he’s ready and willing to play in the NHL next season for whichever team picks him in the 2013 NHL Draft on June 30th in New Jersey.

“I had already decided that leave for the NHL,” said Nichushkin, who added both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Nashville Predators have expressed interest in drafting him. – “[Dynamo] calmly reacted to this. I was told that I could leave if I want. No legal problems there.”

Dynamo had acquired the 18-year-old from Traktor Chelyabinsk on May 1st.

According to Nichushkin, his contract with Dynamo “will terminate, and I’m going to be a free agent. I was lucky that I went to the club to make concessions. We agreed that they would let me go, but if across the ocean something goes wrong, I’m right back to them.”

Nichushkin told Future Considerations’ Roman Soloviev prior to his trade to Dynamo that he planned to play out his contract with Traktor before jumping to North America and would not consider playing in either the Canadian Hockey League or American Hockey League.

The 6-foot-4, 196-pound power forward is fifth in Future Considerations’ final ranking for the 2013 NHL Draft.